I received an ARC via NetGalley for review*

Motherhood is rough. Bringing home a new baby and watching your husband ride off into the sunset to work like nothing has changed, while you sit at home with no adult-contact and a fussy baby could drive anyone mad.

Meet: Natalie. She’s a hard working lawyer whose life just turned upside down. She’s type A, and so in love with her son, she’d do anything for his happiness. Including putting herself on the back burner.

Enter: bright and cheerful neighbor Paul. Seemingly the answer to all Natalie’s problems. He’s great with her baby, and such a great listener. But what exactly are his intentions?

While the beginning of the book had me immediately on Team Natalie, the middle of the book draaaaagged. It took me days to get through. However, once my kindle said 50%, I finished the book in one sitting.

Deliciously f*cked up, and an absolute page-turner toward the end.

Maybe just don’t read it while you’re on maternity leave 😉

This book was too much of a slow burn for me, I DNF’d it in the second part and couldnt pick it back up again.

At its core, this is a story about motherhood and postpartum depression/ psychosis. While I am not a mom myself, I found the perspective quite interesting though extremely detailed and at times, repetitive. Also, the mystery itself did not play a part until well into the second half of the book and the marketing misled me, especially after reading The Favor. If you plan to pick this up, I really enjoyed the dual audio narration and thought both narrators did a great job portraying all the emotions as well as building some suspense.

Read if you like:
-Domestic suspense
-Stories about motherhood
-Small town setting

Thank you SMP and Macmillan Audio for the ARC/ALC. Pub date: 5/30/23

What a great thriller! Natalie is a new mom in a new home and neighborhood who is on the brink of her breaking point with her baby. Sleep and food deprived, Paul approaches Natalie with help and advice and friendship. Paul then plays to Nats vulnerability to set her up for the murder of his wife. I thought this was a great story with a quick pace and could relate to having been a new mom and the emotions that go along with it.

I think this book mistakenly was categorized as mystery/thriller. The mystery element not happening until way past the second part of the book, which is super misleading. The book did a great job describing postpartum depression, difficulties of new motherhood and its struggle.

This is a great portrayal of motherhood and the struggles that sometimes accompany the post partum transition, including depression and psychosis. This story follows Natalie and family and her new neighbors, in her lovely suburban cu de sac. Events begin to make her question her reality and her neighbors. This was gripping and really disturbing! It kept the readers interest, throughout and I highly recommend this book. I would like to thank Netgalley, the author and St Martins press/ Minotaur for the Arc in exchange for my fair and honest review..

DNF. So much emphasis on being a new mother, which the title is aptly named but still. I just couldn't get into the story.

3.5 stars rounded down. This story is somewhat mismarketed as a "thriller." Although it has a thriller component, that does not really become relevant until over halfway through the story. The majority of this story is about a new mother who is portrayed as the stereotypical unreliable narrator. While I believe the author was trying to depict the struggles of postpartum life, and the toll it can take on one's mental health. Some of the maternal experience was written in quite a detailed manner, which was a bit much for me at times.

This book stirred up all kinds of emotions within me. I struggled to connect with the new mother, Natalie. Once I realized what was happening, I reminded myself that it is something many women go through and I was able to move forward with an open mind. There were all kinds of dark, depressing moments as she struggled to do what she felt needed to be done.

The neighbor, Paul, kept me on pins and needles. I never knew what he was going to do or what his plan was. I wanted to like him. I wanted him to be a hero. I needed someone in this book to be a hero. One did eventually show up much to my relief.

This has a huge build up and when things are just about to be revealed it cuts off and we are fast forwarded to life in the aftermath of it all. I felt a bit cheated that I didn’t get to see it all unfold. Natalie’s story was exhausting, which is a testament to this author’s writing, and the ending, while a bit whitewashed, was satisfying enough. Be sure to read the author’s note as it shines so much light on this story and this topic.

After I read Murphy’s debut The Favor, I knew I wanted to read her next one.
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Natalie and her husband Tyler are new to the neighborhood. She has a baby, Oliver. As an exhausted mother she is having a hard time adjusting to motherhood. Oliver is colicky. Natalie is trying to adjust from working full time to motherhood after taking a sabbatical. Tyler tries to be there and help Natalie but she won’t let him. She feels like she is loosing her mind.
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One day meets a neighbor Paul, who has a daughter and they share stories and he is very helpful with Natalie. He seems to understand and commiserates with her.
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Paul’s wife is not thrilled about their friendship and warns Natalie to stay away from her husband. Soon she is missing!!! Paul goes to the police but he has his ulterior motives.
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Motherhood does not come easy to everyone and it’s important to have a great support system. As a mom, I remember those sleepless nights. The author note is a MUST read.
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Thank you Netgalley, Minotaur books, MacMillian Audio and author Nora Murphy for these advanced copies. This novel kept me engaged the entire time.

This novel is due out May 30, 2023.

#minotaur, #stamperlady50, #noramurphy, #thenewmother, #netgalley, #bookreview, #booksconnectus, #bookstagram

I probably should have passed on this one knowing the premise of the book, but I really liked the author's first book The Favor. The title says it all and as a childless woman (by choice), I couldn't relate to or really care about all the issues that come with being a new mother. Although thankfully this book didn't have as many references and descriptions of breastfeeding like another book I read recently.

Overall, I guess it was a psychological thriller, it just took a long time to get there. It was pretty predictable and paints an interesting, albeit scary, picture of what it's like for a woman after she has a baby.

I tried really hard to get into this book, but I couldn’t do it. The early chapters of the new mother obsessing over every infant movement was too much. With a protagonist that I dislike, I have no interest in what happens to them. Not the thriller I was hoping for.

A new mom struggling to adjust befriends a man in the neighborhood who uses her extreme vulnerability to his advantage (queue the murder!!) The descriptions of postpartum issues/life with a newborn were so painfully accurate that it kinda stressed me out while reading. A unique spin on the traditional domestic thriller.

I really struggled with this book. While i think it really grasped motherhood and new motherhood so well and authentically, it failed to really grasp my attention. I didn’t find it particularly thrilling and i wanted to move past the redundancy of the motherhood aspect. I wanted more.

I did like the neighbors chapters. I think he was creepy.

This was a slow burn but a pretty good story. New mom Nat moves into a new neighbor and becomes friends with her neighbor Paul, who is a stay at home dad. Paul is a lifeline for her as she struggles with a her difficult baby, but Paul has an ulterior motive for befriending her that becomes more apparent as the story continues.

While the book does a good job as showing what those first few months of motherhood are like, I felt really sad that Natalie was clearly struggling with post pardum depression and no one around her even noticed. She also kept feeding that baby to calm him down and I was like “nooooooo”. Beyond that, I like the cat and mouse game that she and Paul were playing before all was said and done, and thought the ending of the book was enjoyable.

Overall, decent read that I liked ok, but didn’t love. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 stars

Just the concept of "motherhood" conjures images of terror for me, so the idea of a new mother in the midst of a mystery/thriller seems like a great fit from the jump...and it is.

Readers meet Natalie while she is literally in labor with her first child. While she shares perspectives with Paul, her neighbor, it's really Natalie whose story becomes prominent. Readers share incredibly intimate moments with her: not just that birth episode but also her many challenging and at times embarrassing experiences with her body and mind as she adjusts to the early stages of parenting. Natalie is depicted as a particularly *together* character: one who thinks her new home is more than they need and than she might want, who has a seemingly steady relationship with a long-time partner, and who is well educated and driven (a successful attorney). The depiction of Natalie as a high functioning individual offsets her rapid decline into another state altogether, and the writing effectively has readers, Natalie's husband and coworkers, and even Natalie wondering what the heck is happening to her.

Then there's Paul.

Readers learn how Paul became a stay-at-home dad early on, and there's no avoiding increasing suspicion around this dude. Once we get into his head, he offers many added reasons for how and why he is incredibly sus. That noted, because Natalie's confusion/repetition/wavering grasp on time and reality are all written so well, it's STILL tough to know - at times - who's really in the wrong, what has actually happened, and for sure how the novel will resolve. These bits of uncertainty offer readers a sliver of insight into what Natalie's life must be like, and it is truly unsettling (but fun to read!).

This is an engaging read; I listened to it nearly straight through during a lengthy day of errands, chores, and meal prep. I was engaged and interested the whole time, but I did note, especially because of the straight through listen, that there were some opportunities for editing. I'd have loved a little less repetition and detail in certain areas.

I'm coming out of this having enjoyed the read (especially thanks to the audio version), looking forward to more from this author, and reaffirming that motherhood really does seem like a frightening proposition!

Very appreciative to have been invited to read The New Mother on NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Natalie Fanning is a new mother, and while she adores her son, she's exhausted and falling apart. Little Oliver is a terrible sleeper and he's always ready for a feeding; Nat never gets to rest herself. Feeling lonely and isolated (she takes a longer sabbatical from work to care for her son), she strikes up a friendship with her neighbor Paul, a stay-at-home dad who assures her things will get better.

But Paul has plans for Natalie other than her friendship. And it might be too late for Natalie once she realizes what those plans are.

I'm conflicted in how to rate this book. I enjoyed the author's previous work and I'd definitely read more. Her writing sparkles, and in this book, she really captured the exhaustion of new motherhood and post partum depression. But I struggled to sympathize with Natalie and found her just as horrible as Paul.

Part of the problem is in the categorizing of the book itself, which isn't isolated to this one novel. Knowing it's a hot genre, it seems as though so many publishers throw books into the mystery/thriller/suspense without them being decidedly so. I would not recommend this to fans of the genre. It isn't until well after the halfway point things get "thrilling," and I honestly would have stopped reading this within the first 5-10 percent if I were reading this for any other reason than a NetGalley review.

The constant repetition of Natalie's sleeplessness and her breast-is-best/mommy martyrdom is as exhausting as she feels. I can't tell you how many times I wanted to yell at her to just buy a darn can of Enfamil and let your husband give the kid a bottle already.

As for the audience, I'm not quite sure. I don't think childless women (whether by choice or not) will relate to this. Mothers, especially those of us who have been in her shoes, will relate, but after while it's tedious. I skipped large blocks of text, especially when parts of Natalie's narrative got far too preachy.

So while I eagerly await to see what this author comes up with next, this one was a miss for me.

I really liked this one! It definitely brought me back to those first postpartum days/months and the feelings it can bring on. It was more of a slow burn that didn’t have too many twists but it was interesting to see how it all played out and wrapped up in the end. I would recommend it to anyone who loves a good psychological thriller but more so to mothers who would be more familiar with the way the main character is feeling and how isolating and lonely you can feel postpartum. I really liked this author’s writing style and have added her other book, The Favor, to my TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advance digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

I went into this thinking I was getting a mystery, when in reality it was a hard, honest look at what it is like to be a new mother. Four stars for this one as it was thought-provoking and well done.

This is a slow burn read, that gradually grows in intensity. I found myself completely riveted to my seat for the last half. The building blocks of this story are expertly arranged. Leading you in deeper and deeper, while you are unaware that anything is off or that something sinister is brewing.

Nat has just given birth to her only son, Oliver. She cannot stop watching him in complete amazement and astonishment, that she brought this little human into the world. As the days progress, marching on endlessly. Slowly becoming a continuous circle of time. Crying, diaper changes, nursing, naps, crying, diaper changes, nursing, naps. The incredible loneliness that becomes soul crushing. Brings Nat to the edge of despair, looking for anyone who understands what she is going through and does not judge her. In walks Paul. The next neighbor who knows exactly what to do with a crying baby. Can calm any tension by just being there. Nat immediately attaches to him; he is her lifeline. Just a small light at the end of a very dark tunnel. This all changes when he begins to be standoffish. Not wanting to see her or needing their friendship. Nat is at a complete loss, making her desperate to know what she did. You must keep reading to find out what is going on in this seemingly safe suburbia neighborhood.

Murphy nailed the early days of motherhood. It brought me back to the endless sleepless nights and days. The crying will only stop when you hold the baby. Not wanting to look like a failure, even though you seem like you are at every corner. Post partum depression is brought to the forefront of the book. The characters are fantastically written, and you want to smack some, and hug others. Thank you to Nora Murphy, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for gifting me this fantastic